Automotive vehicles, such as passenger cars and trucks, conventionally have side view mirrors mounted on the sides of the vehicles to display to the driver images of the areas behind and to the sides of the vehicle. A conventional side view mirror comprises a support housing within which an adjustable angle mirror is mounted. The housing is connected to the vehicle in various known manners. The angularity of such mirrors can be adjusted by the vehicle driver either remotely, that is, from the driver's position behind the steering wheel of the vehicle, or directly, by direct hand pressure upon the mirror to move it within the housing.
Typically, the driver of a vehicle adjusts the angularity of the mirror so that the driver can view a reflected image of the respective side and rear area of the vehicle. Since the driver's position in a vehicle varies from one time to another because the driver may adjust the position of the vehicle seat upwardly or downwardly or forwardly and rearwardly, a mechanism for angularly adjusting the mirror is necessary in order to best display the reflected image desired by the driver.
Conventional, side view mirrors display a narrow angle and far distant side and rear area relative to the vehicle. Thus, there is normally a short distance area along the side of the vehicle which is commonly referred to as the "blind spot" or "blind spot" zone or area which is not ordinarily visible to the driver. In those instances where a following vehicle enters the blind spot area, the driver of the leading vehicle may not be aware of that condition. Because the following vehicle is not readily visible to the driver of the leading vehicle, the driver of the leading vehicle may inadvertently steer into the adjacent lane where the following vehicle is located or may veer towards the following vehicle a sufficient distance to collide with the following vehicle. Thus, accidents, involving collisions between a leading vehicle and a following vehicle located in the blind spot zone of the leading vehicle are common. At times, where the driver of the following vehicle was sufficiently alert, the following vehicle may have swerved away from the leading vehicle. That could have caused the following vehicle to run off the road or to collide with a another vehicle located on the opposite side of the following vehicle.
In the case of large trucks, frequently a separate, short range, wide angle, "blind spot" zone viewing mirror is mounted below or adjacent the normal side view mirror. Thus, the driver, has two mirrors to monitor in order to obtain both the normal side-rear view and a view of the vehicle's blind spot zone. However, that is somewhat distracting to the driver. Although separate "blind spot" or wide angle mirrors have been proposed for automobiles, the required sizes or size limitations on side view mirrors, in general, make these dual mirrors unpopular.
Thus, it would be desirable to have a dual view, side view mirror available for automotive vehicles, particularly passenger automobiles and other small size vehicles, which normally displays a normal side-rear image but which, when appropriate, will temporarily display a view of the blind spot zone to the vehicle driver. The invention herein is concerned with providing such a dual mirror which normally reflects the conventional narrow and long range side and rear view for a vehicle driver but, which will sense the presence of a following vehicle in the blind spot zone of a leading vehicle, and thereafter, will automatically adjust the angle of the mirror to momentarily display the presence of a following vehicle. When the following vehicle is no longer in the blind spot zone, the side view mirror will automatically return to its normal position.